One accident leads to another on Easton Avenue

At 7 p.m. Monday and Tuesday people have been gathering at the makeshift shine at the scene opposite the church for a prayer service to remember Matias Ortega, who was killed this past weekend on his first birthday by an alleged intoxicated driver.
Alexander Lewis / Editorial Intern

While investigating an accident on Easton Avenue Saturday evening, Franklin police witnessed a second accident on the same roadway.(Photo: ~File)

FRANKLIN (Somerset) – While investigating an accident on Easton Avenue Saturday evening, police witnessed a second accident on the same roadway.

At 11:43 p.m. Saturday, police received multiple 9-1-1 calls reporting an overturned vehicle in the area of JFK Boulevard and Easton Avenue, said Franklin Police Lt. Phil Rizzo Sunday.

Officers found a commercial water tanker truck overturned in the intersection. The tanker truck then struck a 2015 Audi and a 2006 Nissan. The Audi and Nissan suffered minor damage and the occupants were uninjured, Rizzo said.

Witnesses at the scene told officers that the driver of the tanker fled the area on foot. Police provided a description of the driver and responded to the area in an attempt to locate him. The investigation identified the driver as, Christopher Bellamy, 44, of Piscataway. Bellamy was found on Veronica Avenue a short time later.

Rizzo said the investigation found that Bellamy was travelling on JFK Boulevard toward Easton Avenue when he sharply cut the wheel causing the truck to overturn.

Bellamy was taken to a local hospital for treatment and charged with driving while intoxicated, leaving the scene of a motor vehicle crash, failing to report a motor vehicle crash, operating a vehicle while on the suspended list and operating a vehicle while unlicensed, Rizzo said.

While investigating the first accident, officers witnessed another three-car crash. A 2010 Ford Edge driven by Michael Price, 53, of Monroe, was stopped in traffic because of the overturned tanker truck in the roadway. This caused a 2013 Nissan Altima, driven by Michael Hoagland, 28, of Franklin, to strike a 2013 Nissan Pathfinder, driven by Gregory C. Wood Jr., 35, also of Franklin. The Pathfinder then struck the Ford Edge driven by Price.

Wood suffered minor, non-life threatening injuries and was taken to a local area hospital for treatment. To date, no charges have been filed in this accident, Rizzo said.

Traffic in the area was impacted for several hours during the investigation and subsequent cleanup of both accident scenes. When the tanker truck overturned, the fuel cell ruptured and caused a discharge of diesel fuel, Rizzo said. Franklin Township firefighters and members of the Somerset County Hazardous Materials Team responded to the scene to address and mitigate the discharge of the fuel.